By Lee Toy
Vol. 6 No.3- May. – Jun. 1983

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

I had planned on attending the Smithsonian Kite Festival, one of the largest and long-est running events in the USA. I had men-tioned to Paul Garber that I would see him along with the Moellers, Govigs and the Makeys who also planned on being there

Fate was against me. Exhausted from a long day’s ride from Miami (14 hours) I arrived wet and cold in Savannah, Georgia the eve-ning of the 23rd, three days before the BIG event.

It would have been an easy two day trip to Washington D.C. had it not snowed in North Carolina and parts of Virginia that night. I didn’t relish the thought of freezing thru the snow on a one-snail open sleigh.

The next morning I awoke to a cold and rainy sky and to top it off I had managed to catch a virus that had me “on the run”. I surrendered the thought of travelling and opted for recuperating in the warmth and grandeur of one of Savan-nah’s finest historical houses owned by a friend of the Colonel, Alvin Neely.Eventually I made my way to Lexington, VA, home of Washington and Lee University, VMI (Virginia Military Institute) and Colonel Boatwright.

Lexington is nestled in the Shenandoah Valley with the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Alle-gheny Mountains to the west. What better place to stop and witness the advent of Spring. Redbud and dogwood blossoms sparkle in a sea of cool green forests that engulf the surrounding hillsides.Azaleas, wisteria and iris have now re-placed the faded colors of the tulips and the daffodils.

The clean mountain air is fragrant with the perfume of lilac and new mown lawn; fertilized fields near by add their presence later, in the warmth of the afternoon sun. Robins, bluejays and card-inals are in abundance and add color and song to the morning solitude as squirrels and rabbits scurry about the lawn looking for nuts buried long ago or a plump juicy dandelion stem to nibble on.

One can easily inagine that Walt Disney came here to be inspired for the backgrounds of BAMBI; I hope I can be equally inspired to finish this LATEst issue of KITE FLYER.

An hour and a half northeast of Lexington lie the hallowed grounds of “Hornbeam Hall”.

Occasionally an unsuspecting AVON lady will ring the door bell looking for “Mrs. Hall”, only to find non-editor Guy “Attaboy” Aydlett working feverishly away on that shamefully ON TIME publication PMAF (Piney Mountain Air Force) Data Letter.

I guess it has something to do with being surrounded by all those carefully handcrafted horological devices which Guy used to and still does, on occasion, dabble in.If you don’t already subscribe to PMAF Data Letter (scan-dalously punctual) you should, at $8.50 a year for 12 issues, it’s a good deal.

P.O. Box 7304, Charlottesville, VA 22906

DELTA IS READY WHEN YOU ARE
If you are planning to attend the 6th Annual AKA convention this year in Columbus, Ohio you can save up to 25% on Delta Air Lines airfare. There are restrictions as to advanced reservations and limited stay.

Call toll free: 1-800- 241-6760 in continental U.S. or in Georgia 1-800-282-8536.

Ask for the AKA convention rate, MCF25. You must leave your home city between the 4th and 9th of October.MARYLAND KITE SOCIETY KITE FESTIVAL
Over a hundred participants and spectators were visible at the 17th annual MKS Kite Festival held April 30 at Ft. McHenry in Baltimore, MD. The list of volunteers to help with the festivities read like a “Who’s Who” of the kiteworld;Govig, Brown, Marshall, Fohs, Fithian, Gramkowski, Conover, Spencer, Price, Burkhardt to name just a few. It was a wonder there was anyone left to participate in the dayful of friendly competitions.

Hopeful award winners arrived at the field in droves, cars loaded with kites, picnics and kids for a windy afternoon of tangled lines and soaring spirits.After registering, entrants had their kites carefully inspected by a judge for crafts¬manship and design and then to prove that their creations would actually fly, were given the opportunity to loft their dreams before a well wishing crowd of spectators as well as a panel of judges.

Ted Manekin, Official Air Traffic Controller, kept us in¬formed as to what was up in the air and who was stealing second.Overall winner was not from these shores but those of Tawain. Mr. Kin Kan Hsigh, chairman of the Taipai Kite Association, took top honors with a beautiful 100 disk centipede kite which featured an intricate dragon’s head.

The eyes pivoted, the ears flapped, and the jaws moved to the sound of bells concealed beneath a flowing beard which is enough to make one believe that indeed dragons do exist. Kin also flew several figure kites based on ancient chinese folk tales about the Monkey King, although the favorite of the day was MIGHTY MOUSE. Kin’s collapsible bird and butterfly kites made from bamboo and rip-stop nylon attracted quite a bit of attention from interested kitebuilders looking for a challenging spring project.

Mr. Hsigh may be attending the AKA annual convention in Columbus in October and give a workshop on his kitemaking techniques, lets keep our fingers crossed.One of the problems with participating in the contests at kite festivals is that you miss seeing the kites that others have brought with them. I spent most of the afternoon talking with people and taking photos of kites that were unique in one way or another. Here’s a sample:

Elmer Wharton of Chicago had made a 3-D silver lame winged Unicorn with rhinestone eyes and flowing tail.Luther Hux, flew a tandem kite based on the Columbia space shuttle and a 747 launch vehicle.

The two kites would separate in mid-flight and then be flown independently. The two dimensional bodies of the vehicles are constructed with a stressed skin over a light wood framework using model airplane materials. The graphics are to scale and meticulously applied. The wings were made from rip-stop and supported like high aspect ratio delta wings.

New to kiting were Bill and Sue Becker who came in from Harrisburg,PA (long live three mile island) with a 16 celled tetra kite and a Saul’s Barrage kite in matching colors The tetra sails were designed in such a way that when looking at the kite from the flyer’s viewpoint you would see con¬centric squares.

This required some careful geometric projections to get things to line up correctly but the results were well worth it. (For those of you who are interested in a more efficient framing technique for a tetra see PMAF Data Letter number 30 and addendum in 31.)Red Braswell arrived with a truck load/of what he calls hisH23! wonders’: It’s one of the cheapest kites that he knows how to make. Basically it is a rotary kite using two Styrofoam plates and a meat tray glued to an eighth diameter dowel.

It’s so unique I’ve asked him to share it with us for KITE FLYER’S Kite of the Month.

Red also brought along a new version of his STAR kite now being manufactured by Steve Edeiken. The new version is larger than the th d one and replaces the hardwood dowels with fiberglass spars. The colors on the sample were a rich combination of purple, blue and green. As an added note, the kite will be featured in an up coming issue of PLAYBOY magazine.

It will be flown by a bunch of bunnies, of the Hefner kind, on a beach. So Tom H., George H. and Sam U. will have a legitmate excuse for thumbing thru the next few copies at the newsstand. One variation of Red’s star kite appeared as a Daffodil blossom in a yellow and orange color combination with a green fringed tail as the stem.Felix Cartagena arrived with his authentic Rokkaku kite team decked out in some sporty looking Happi coats made from the same printed tyvek that his kite was made out of. The kite was decorated with a fierce Samurai warrior who looked vagely familiar (Felix in a full suit of Japanese armor).

Felix also let Winston Bear make a para¬chute jump into the Patapsco River, I understand he’s doing fine after a clear water rinse and a spin around the dryer set on permanent press.There were about six large Rokkaku kites that were flown at the festival in prepa-ration for the October AKA festival in Ohio-goziamasta (good morning to you too). Evidently the kite industry as well as the auto industry is feeling the influence of the land of the rising sun.

The day ended with lots of ribbons and plaques awarded to smiling recipients.A banquet was held for the well deserving volunteers that had helped make the day a great success.

NEWS FROM YOU

Tom Caldwell, San Mateo, California…
I built the David Elliot “Rokkaku” exactly as per plans in KITE FLYER, execept I used a tyvek cover and bamboo garden stakes joined in the centers by short aluminum tubes.I used only a 4-leg bridle. The kite flies very well but has so much pull I am con-sidering renting an auto tow truck each time I fly it….

ed. A kite this size does pull hard, David also suggests gloves in any wind above 5 mph.Lar 6 Cyndy Moeller, Westboro, MA… So where the *1W# were you when we were to meet at the Smithsonian festival…

By now you may have noticed that we have indeed gotten around to publishing the first K.O.N.E. newsletter….By the way, hope you don’t mind that we “borrowed” David Elliot’s Rokkaku plans….

(ed. I don’t mind, David is a member of the K.O.N.E. and I appreciate his sharing of his design with the readers of KITE FLYER)….The Bermuda trip was a good time too….01an Turner and I had a set of Rainbows so we could fly them together.ed. K.O.N.E. newsletter is a quarterly for $5.001 year. Kites Over New England, P.O. Box 635, Westboro, MA 01581. Tell them Barney sent you.

Vincent Balogh, Alanta, Georgia…

Last weekend I flew to the place of my birth, Cleveland for a family re-union and the event of my Aunt’s Seventy-fifth birthday….Enroute I found the enclosed article in Delta’s “Sky” magazine.

Being a Senior officer in the Kite world, you may have seen it. In the event you have not,here it is.ed. Thanks for the article, I hadn’t seen it. It’s quite an article including Gary Lavelle’s kite shop Heavenly Body Kites in Key West, FL , a stack of 9 different color Peter Powells, words of wisdom from our illustrious leader Jack Van Gilder in Seattle, WA and a few cameo appearences by Dave Checkley and Tom Shaner (AKA executive director;).

Toby Schlick, Fishcreek, Wisconsin…

Hope you got that motor thing back on the road. I have just returned from a month in Arizona learning to fly gliders. An untimate kite? While there I got the U.S. Air Force Academy hooked on Flexifoils. They love ’em

Charlie Sotich, Chicago, Illinois…
Got your March-April “KITE FLYER” today.

The mail was waiting when I got home from jogging 8 miles. I read the “KITE FLYER” from cover to cover before taking my shower….I find the stories of your travels fascinating especially to such notable people as Domina Jalbert and Wyatt Brummitt…. The only thing I don’t like is that I now need to wait two more months to find out what your next series of adventures will be…

Carol Henry, “Herpes by the Bay”, Calif.

Bimbo got a job….Yes, indeed, we are almost middle class, and we will fit in so very nicely. Tom is a “field operations manager” in the service of repair to microscopes and other vital elements of the mysterious Silicon Valley.

He has bought some new socks and has landed a career. (ed. is he still allowed to fly kites on the weekends?) He seems happy enough and requires only 2 aspirins a day. Perhaps this will be an inspiration to you. However, I do wish to report that Bimbo did sell a subscription to your god awful newsletter, and you can quote me, between the time of rags to riches. The $5.00 bought us a small pizza (no beer)ed.

I am glad that you didn’t starve. You’re still my Favorite Little Woman, gag me with a spoon.George Peters, Boulder, Colorado….

I finally made what resembles a catalogue and small business (very small!)… Anyway, here’s a copy for you or anyone you think might be interested….I’ve still been marveling at the beauty of winter here and hate to see it go…Still up in the air…

ed. I may be crazy but I had to order something from the catalog as soon as I saw it. I think that you may do the same. ‘FLYING COLORS’ is the name of George’s business and I believe it’s off to a flying start. The catalog has something for everyone; from a 30″ fish banner for $12 to a 5lx101 Fancy Cloud Bird for $150.
Contact George Peters at 815 Spruce St., Boulder, Colorado 80302.

Dave Elliot, Boston, MA…
I’ve made two “spinning gum drops” they’re great.I plan to try a larger one (3 ft. diam.) with a largish stunt kite, attaching 3 or 4 streamer tails around the perimeter of the drogue; they will corkscrew as the kite flies (speed of rotation varying with the speed of the kites). There’s great potential for tangled tails in the scheme, but when it works, it’s gorgeous. (I’ve experimented with spar-supported pinwheels tails already.

I expect the lower mass of the gumdrop spinners will improve flight characteristics and enable the use of a smaller stunt kite.) When I come up with a workable system I’ll draw up some plans and send them to you….Marty (Sasaki) and I almost talked ourselves into driving down to D.C. for the Smithsonian Festival, but reason prevailed. I’m definitely planning to be at the AKA convention in Columbus in October.

Hope to see you there.ed. It seems to me that the gumdrops create quite a bit of drag. Brooks Leffer uses them on Jalbert Barndoors instead of bricks. One suggestion is to replace the shroud lines with something more rigid like webbing or ribbon, this would keep the drogue lines from twisting up on themselves.

Miller and Betty Makey, Grove City, Ohio..
Plans for the 6th Annual AKA Convention are moving right along….I am hearing reports that many groups have been making Rokkaku’s for the ‘kite war’ at Columbus. —make sure you bring your night lights for the first AKA Night Flight, it should be fun…give me a line when you can…or.. if you prefer, I’ll hold the kite and you pull the line….Adrian and Jody Conn, Winsor, Ontario, Canada….

Glad to hear you have your wheels back on the road. We also know what it is like without them. Adrian was in a car accident and he’s okay. All he received was a bruise on his knee, thank God but the car was totalled. Our next vehicle will be a van…. Adrian needs the room for all of his kites… by the way his first words after the accident (as the wrecker was coming) were “I want to remove all my kites and string, before you haul my car away”.

ASH LAWN KITE FLY
May 8th was the date of the 4th Annual Ash Lawn Kite Day held at the beautiful rural homestead of President James Monroe. Kites were flown from a grassy field next to the Monroe house, under cloudy skies that threatened rain. Stout hearted enthusiasts from as far away as Washington D.C. and as nearby as Hornbeam Hall came out to pit their skills against those of Nature.

There were dozens of kites in the sky and lots of kite talk among old and new friends when a sudden squall came thru and cleared the sky with a little bit of rain. Most people gathered up their kites and headed for the shelter of the Visitor Center.

A few of us remained on the field enjoying an open sky. There didn’t appear to be any thunder or lightening in the squall; had there been I would have quickly gone for cover.

There were no formal contests announced, but ribbons were awarded for a variety of good reasons and handed out in the Visitor Center where most of the people had gathered.Your dear editor was surprised to receive not a ribbon but a beautiful pewter Jefferson Cup (if you even put one foot in Virginia you’ll soon know what a Jefferson Cup is) for the “Best Design” category.

One judge for the contest was kite maker Verlon Vrana from Richmond. Verlon makes a variety of bird kites with complex wing structures and fragile Japanese hand made papers for coverings. The birds’ head and feet are made from styrofoam, first carved and then primed with gesso before adding a finished coat of color. The three kites Verlon had this day included an eagle, a goose and a duck in an aviator’s hat and goggles, the last one being my favorite.

Verlon mentioned the Coto Crane kites from Japan as a possible influence in his work.After the fly several of the participants retreated to the safety and warmth of Hornbeam Hall and talked until the wee hours of the night. Thank you Guy and Dot for introducing me to some of the East Coast regulars.
ONE MILLION ABOVE THE FOLD

Charlie Sotich of the Chicago Skyliner Kite Club was seen by over one million readers of USA TODAY when his photo appeared in the May 2 issue, front page above the fold. It appears that Charlie had been helping some kids fly kites in St. Paul, Minnesota when captured on film.

GONE BUT NOT FLORIDIAN
Contrary to popular belief, that there is not a kite shop in Miami, one did turn it self in at 3098-A Fuller St. in Coconut Grove. Donald Linne,one time photographers is determined to make his shop, called Kites on a String Inc. into the focus of Miami’s kite community. Don has already started a local newsletter and has been busy with community kite awareness with late night TV ads.TWENTY-EIGHT CENT WONDER
The “28 Wonder” is a kite that Red Braswell designed. Red claims that it was all pos¬sible because Dart Drug Store came out with a 10-1/4″ diameter styrofoam plate which is a vital ingredient to this recipe. If you cannot find a 10-1/4″ you might substitute a 8-7/8″ or 9″ diameter plate, they’re a lot easier to find. This is another one of those kites that people marvel at and ask “Does that thing really fly?”.

Red enjoys letting the kite “walk” itself to the end of a parking lot, without telling people what it is and then watching the astonished look of surprise on their faces as he pops it into the air.Red Braswell was the first President of the American Kitefliers Association and is still very active in designing new kites.

Thanks Red for sharing this kite with us.

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